APMiami Dolphins wide receiver Brandon Marshall (19) stretches near the goal line as New England Patriots defensive back Devin McCourty (32) defends during the second half of an NFL football game Monday, Sept. 12, 2011, in Miami.

FOXBOROUGH – After fading in the long shadows cast by his
two previous matchups – Brandon Marshall and Vincent Jackson – Patriots
cornerback Devin McCourty will finally be presented with an opponent that's at
least within his height bracket.

That doesn't mean that this week is going to be any easier,
though. The Buffalo Bills have the NFL's highest-scoring offense, and wide
receiver Stevie Johnson (6-foot-2), who will likely be McCourty's chief
assignment, has been one of the biggest beneficiaries of that high output.

But he's not the only one playing well. What the Bills lack
in individual talent at the receiver position, they make up for with depth.

"Buffalo spreads the ball around, you talk about (David)
Nelson, Johnson, and also Donald Jones is playing well," McCourty said. "Even
with Roscoe Parrish down, they have a bunch of capable wide receivers. It
doesn't get any easier."

At some point, though, it has to get easier for McCourty.
His first two weeks have been a struggle after being named to the Pro Bowl as a
rookie last season. Against Miami, he was targeted on nine receptions for 151
yards. San Diego beat him six times for 123 yards and two touchdowns.

Quarterbacks currently have a 124.4 quarterback rating when
throwing his direction. Last season that figure was 61.1, and his worst game
came in Week 3 against the Bills when Ryan Fitzpatrick posted a 147.2 rating
when throwing at him.

McCourty maintains, as he has all along, that there are improvements
that need to be made for him to start producing as he did as a rookie. For now, he says those issues are minor, but he's trying
to get in front of them before they can grow into something worse.

"What you might consider minor could turn out to be
something major," McCourty said. "So the little techniques we have to fix and
different things like that start as being a minor play. You might make a minor
mistake and the play goes away. Maybe the next week, that same minor mistake,
you make it again and they throw at you and the guy scores.

"So I think it's a bunch of minor mistakes and techniques
that have to be fixed."